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Notes In Observance – WWE NXT 8/10/16: Psychological Warfare

“Notes In Observance” features random thoughts and analysis on recent television shows. Quick results can be found at the bottom of the post.

(Aired 8/10/16)

Psychological Warfare

– We liked how the show opened out of the usual realm, as Bobby Roode walked out of General Manager William Regal’s office with a smile on his face now that he knew of “something great.” He left it at that and walked away. Yummy, some light drama and anticipation.

– The in-ring NXT Women’s Championship contract signing segment with Regal, NXT Women’s Champion Asuka and Bayley got things off to an intense foot. With the storyline headed in so far focused on Asuka toying with Bayley mentally, this time, it was Bayley who declared she was ready for “The Empress Of Tomorrow” like she wasn’t back at TakeOver: Dallas and she was eager to make history again in Brooklyn at TakeOver: Brooklyn II. Asuka’s confident glares was an early highlight, before it became Bayley’s fiery attitude to the point where she rejected handshake offers by Asuka twice after being told she wasn’t ready by the Champ. On one hand, you could argue it wasn’t like Bayley at all to show disrespect to an opponent, but based off how Asuka treated her last time around, it could be justified. It built some necessary drama to this already-marquee match. It also painted the picture that Bayley needed to step out of her comfort zone to be on Asuka’s level. Good stuff all-around.

– The Authors Of Pain continue to look like a mash-up of The Shield and Lucha Underground’s Matanza in terms of look and style, but they also continue the victory trend. They reigned supreme with another display of destruction upon Rob Ryzin and Adrian Nails, a necessary squash win to keep them strong. The powerbomb clash was a unique spot, but this was your basic “big man destroys little opponent” bout as the agile behemoths made quick work of their fellow competitors. The post-match angle with AOP and TM61 was a welcome sight despite the newcomer babyfaces getting laid out by the heels after some brief momentum. It establishes a new focus for AOP and while TM61 aren’t exactly pushovers, they could lose to AOP with a respectable effort and still get something out of it.

– Shinsuke Nakamura’s backstage promo was short, yet good. He addressed that NXT Champion Samoa Joe’s recent threat to take him out so that he didn’t make it to TakeOver as void, because he said he wasn’t hard to find and threatened to find Joe himself. Keeps Nakamura strong and portrayed as fearless against the monster Joe.

– The Andrade “Cien” Almas-Angelo Dawkins match made sense on the surface as another squash win for the athletic unmasked Almas while Dawkins continued to flash more personality. Not much excitement besides the finishing sequence – as the double knees/hammerlock DDT combo did Dawkins in. The crowd released some polite applause for Almas with his gestured motivations, but you could tell Almas isn’t all that over. The post-match promo from Roode put everything all together, as he revealed that Almas was his TakeOver opponent and it’d now be “glorious.” They’re really riding this theme song to the bank, but it’s just that good. Also liked the way Roode condescendingly spoke down to Almas for not knowing English to heel it up some. Great way to announce Roode’s NXT in-ring debut. Should be big.

– From one TNA crossover to another, the backstage segment in Regal’s office with Regal and Austin Aries established what “The Greatest Man That Ever Lived” would also do at TakeOver, as he complained to Regal that TakeOver wasn’t truly a “special” without him, to which Regal announced that his opponent would be none other than No Way Jose, who he accused of avoiding. Aries was gold here with his mic skills, yet he remained confident in his personality upon the announcement.

– The Billie Kay-Liv Morgan match probably felt the most out of place on the episode. Not to say it was a bad match, but outside of an agenda to further showcase Kay as a ruthless lady and Morgan’s upbeat offense, not much to offer here. At least there was some continuity with Kay’s big boot being the deciding factor. There was also some more subtle Cruiserweight Classic hype as they showed Noam Dar, Jack Gallagher and Rich Swann in the crowd as spectators.

– In a seamless transition, they replayed the First Round CWC match between Johnny Gargano-Tommaso Ciampa as Gargano overcame, which led to the backstage segment between Regal and the duo as he praised their performances and announced that at TakeOver, they’d get a shot at the NXT Tag Team Championships against the Champion The Revival. The faces smoothed over that there was no bad blood between them in lieu of their big opportunity. We liked that they tied in the chemistry factor to what happened in the CWC.

– Another hype video aired for Ember Moon. Not sure what she’s all about yet, but she looks like a kickass Mortal Kombat character. Her first appearance was set for TakeOver.

– The Gargano/Ciampa-Tucker Knight/Patrick Clark match was another easy squash to establish that the babyface tag challengers were on the same page as TakeOver closed in. Knight also showed some nice power moments and Clark continued to confuse us with the patriotic self-obsessed ring attire. Just another day at the ring.

– With the announced main event between Mojo Rawley and Joe, they did a decent job with Rawley’s backstage promo, as he laid bold insults for the “fat, 900-pound heavyweight” about how he stuck his nose in his business and closed it out with the classic line, “It’s not about getting hype, it’s about getting even.” True that.

– On the surface, the Rawley-Joe main event served its goal as a glorified squash for Joe to stay strong, yet also took some upfront offense from Rawley at the beginning. Expected ending as Joe submitted Rawley to the Coquina Clutch, but with some amped aggression, as Referees had to pry him of Rawley upon a second attempt of the move. This then drew out Nakamura for a brilliant post-match angle to close the show as he taunted Joe with fighting poses, grabbed his nose and slapped him, all while the Champ was restrained by seven men. That’s how you do it.

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About Nicholas Jason Lopez

Just a 26 year-old Brooklynite. Nothing more, nothing less.
Currently Freelancing for The Bensonhurst Bean website in Brooklyn, he has also been published on sites such as Review Fix, College University of New York Athletic Conference, Dying Scene, Brooklyn News Service, All Media NY, BrooklynFans.com and Yahoo Voices.
He has also interned for The Home Reporter/Brooklyn Spectator based out of Brooklyn, NY.